OWCP News Release: [07/06/2012]
Contact Name: Jesse Lawder
Phone Number: (202) 693-4659
Email Address: lawder.jesse@dol.gov
Release Number: 12-1357-NEW (254)
US Department of Labor notifies former Electro Metallurgical workers of inclusion in new EEOICPA Special Exposure Cohort
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor is notifying all former Electro Metallurgical workers who were employed at the facility located in Niagara Falls, N.Y., about a new class of employees added to the Special Exposure Cohort of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act. The EEOICPA provides compensation and medical benefits to workers who became ill as a result of working in the nuclear weapons industry. Survivors of qualified workers also may be entitled to benefits.
A worker who is included in a designated SEC class of employees, and who is diagnosed with one of 22 specified cancers, may receive a presumption of causation under the EEOICPA. On May 11, 2012, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services designated the following class of employees as an addition to the SEC: all employees of the U.S. Department of Energy, its predecessor agencies, and its contractors and subcontractors who worked at the Electro Metallurgical site in Niagara Falls from Aug. 13, 1942, through Dec. 31, 1947, for at least 250 workdays occurring either solely under this employment or in combination with workdays within other classes of employees in the SEC. This designation became effective on June 10, 2012. The Labor Department’s role is to adjudicate these claims based on the new SEC class definition as determined and introduced by HHS.
To date, $11.9 million in EEOICPA compensation and medical benefits has been paid to 133 Electro Metallurgical claimants, while more than $8.2 billion has been paid nationwide. For additional information about the new Electro Metallurgical SEC or to schedule an appointment for claim-filing assistance, contact the department’s New York Resource Center toll-free at 800-941-3943.
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